Shakuhachi a Bamboo Flute for Meditation

[Survivalmike]

Hi folks!

My newest Projekt was a Shakuhachi!
A Shakuhachi is a bamboo flute which was developed and used in the early 8. century by the japanese people!
The Shakuhachi was developed and used by old samurai and later on by the monks for meditation. The bamboo flute was the center part of all meditations and also for religion use!

It was very simple to make this flute but it is a bit harder to play on it!

Here some Pics of my Shakuhachi:













The binding around the bamboo is for secure, that the bamboo wont split! The feathers I´ve included is only for decoration.
The bamboo flute have 5 finger holes: 4 in the front and one for the thumb on the backside!

With those holes it is possible to play 4 octaves with the flute.

I still try to learn some songs on the shakuhachi - but a good bundle of tones are still playable after a few try´s

It is very important, that the mouthpiece is worked out correctly - the upper part needs to be a flat cut and the blowing edge needs to be very sharp!

Hope you like it
Thx for watching

cheers
Mike

 

[lampengeist]

Why can´t I see the pictures??

 

[Asa Samuel]

I can see the pictures fine.

Looks like an interesting instrument. Is it played like blowing across the top of a bottle?

 

[8thsinner]

I had one of these on order nearly two years ago when I had money coming but the deal fell through.
That looks like a pretty decent one, would you consider selling it or making another?

If you are interested in the music like this, have a listen to (piece for solo flute) By ( dead can dance )
It's phenomenal, touching, emotional and peaceful.

 

[Survivalmike]

No, you dont play it like a bottle-top!
It is a very difficult and other way to set the mouthpiece correctly!

If you take the searchtag "shakuhachi" and put it on youtube, you´ll get a lot of samples!

I´ve done this one out of a bamboo piece from my local DIY-store!
1.5" - 1.8" in diameter is perfect!
drilled the holes by meassuring out where my fingers will rest and grinded down the mouthpiece!

cheers
Mike

@ 8thsinner: I wont sell this one - because its my first one and I really like it! BUT I can make you one and sell it to you if you like!
The thing is: I´m NOT a proffessional Shakuhachi maker and I´m not sure if mine or the next I´ll make are exactly tuned in "D" as prefered!
So if that is ok for you I think we can do something for ya ;-)

 

[8thsinner]

PM en route

 

[big_swede]

First thought: hippies! Second thought: why meditate with a flute? Brahmins and sramans have been meditating for very long time without flutes (or rosaries). Third thought: how do you calculate the different distances for the holes?

Regards

 

[bothyman]

An interesting sound, I may have bebn interested myself if I didn't have dumb fingers.

>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakuhachi

How much would one of these cost ?? just for interests sake ??

MickT

 

[8thsinner]

I'll chime in here bothy, and say they can cost anything between 15 dollars up to and beyond 2000 dollars, the expensive ones are usually made from specially selected bamboo roots. The one I had commissioned if it wasnt a friend would have cost me 1300 dollars...Like everything theres a great difference between a craftnmade item and a factory made.

 

[8thsinner]

And I'll add here, that wiki demo is not a very good one at all.

 

[Leigh Robinson]

I have one and learned to play about half a song. I would really like to get back to it given time.

You put your chin against the hole and the slice cut out sits near your lips and you blow across the slice. Its a crude description but that is about the gist. they make a lovely noise.

 

[bothyman]

I tried a flute and it was hard work, so sadly I will give it a miss and stick to the Harmonica.

But it does look interesting, so may look into trying out a cheap one .

MickT

 

[Stanleythecat]

No, you dont play it like a bottle-top!
It is a very difficult and other way to set the mouthpiece correctly!

If you take the searchtag "shakuhachi" and put it on youtube, you´ll get a lot of samples!

I´ve done this one out of a bamboo piece from my local DIY-store!
1.5" - 1.8" in diameter is perfect!
drilled the holes by meassuring out where my fingers will rest and grinded down the mouthpiece!

cheers
Mike

@ 8thsinner: I wont sell this one - because its my first one and I really like it! BUT I can make you one and sell it to you if you like!
The thing is: I´m NOT a proffessional Shakuhachi maker and I´m not sure if mine or the next I´ll make are exactly tuned in "D" as prefered!
So if that is ok for you I think we can do something for ya ;-)

Hi Mike

Can I ask how you tuned it? I have been making elder flutes and being a raw unmachined material there are quite a few variables ie wall thickness like you must have had with bamboo. Have you any advice.

Thanks

Leo

 

[bothyman]

I found this interesting

>> http://www.mujitsu.com/howtomakeshakuhachi.pdf

MickT

 

[Asa Samuel]

Very very nice sound in the videos I watched, and yes it is played a bit like a bottle-top!

 

[OldFingersGreen]

anybody who finds the technique of these flutes difficult should try native american flutes, like playing a recorder but sounds better! very rewarding to make as well, anybody with minimal tool skills can make one, elderberry trees can be used to make very simple ones as well.

 

[Tengu]

Its very good.

I had a friend try to teach me the flute once, couldnt get a squeak out of it.

Flautists I hold in great admiration.

 

[Minotaur]

First thought: hippies!

Second thought: why meditate with a flute? Brahmins and sramans have been meditating for very long time without flutes (or rosaries).

By choice, not because they were not available. The earliest Prayer beads were Hindu.

Third thought: how do you calculate the different distances for the holes?

That would be really interesting information.

Some here.

 

[Survivalmike]

I´ve done the fingerholes by luck (it was my first attempt on making a flute) and I hold it like I normally would hold a flute and marked the points where my fingers are. Then I meassured out the distance from one mark to the next (which was nearly 6cm from one hole to the next) and marked exactly all 6cm a point for a hole - not the right way, but it works :-D

I think the next flute I´ll make would be done with the superb manual you find in an upper post (link for shakuhachi making). This should be the right way!

cheers
Mike